Sibling Rivalry
by Marvelous.Mirana.of.Marmoreal
Summary: Third person POV  mostly. My first actual story...Part of Mirana and Iracebeth's lives. Mostly Mirana, but Iracebeth is in there too. Title may change...T for later chapters
1. Love at First Sight?

"**Take care of your sister. She's the only one you've got…"**

There were two little girls; one in white and one in red. They were sisters; the one in red was older and had a temper. The one in white was younger and had a kind heart. The two girls sat in the garden today, staring blankly at each other. The one in white was the first to crack a smile, while the one in red burst out laughing. They both failed their little staring contest which they had been going at for only moments. The children collapsed onto the ground in giggles, subconsciously praying no one would catch them in this improper state of behavior.

You see, these two little girls were the Princesses of Underland. Princess Iracebeth was the little girl in Red. Princess Mirana wore white. Iracebeth- or Racie to her sister- was favored since she was older. Mirana- or Mira to her sister and close friends- was left in the dust, only being noticed every few weeks. She was a talented young one, no one cared, was all. Except her sister, of course.

Racie cherished her like the most precious doll, which in a way, Mirana was. Mira was a tiny thing, no larger than an average 10 year old though she was 13. She was also very fragile, her bones brittle and breakable. She was one of the few in Underland born with an Aboveland syndrome- osteogenesis imperfecta, or OI for short. She had type 1, so she was relatively normal, just breaking a few more bones than usual. She also had a disease no one had a cure for, nor did anyone know what it was. It caused a weak immune system and she often vomit after meals, much to her parents disgust.

This accounted for most of the reason why her parents did not have much to do with her. The other was her appearance. They thought her ugly and discolored. Her hair was white as well as her skin. Her eyes were hazel and her lips red, but they both grew dark when she was angry. Her nails were black as midnight and her eyebrows were dark brown. Most of these were tell-tale signs of her unknown disease- the skin, the eyebrows, and the nails. The eyes and lips were what Racie worried about. They told of the Evil within the young one.

Racie knew she had Evil lurking in her heart, everyone has some. She didn't try to contain it. She lashed out at others, making them fear her. It gave her some respect. She didn't want Mira to become this way. So she told her kin about the dangers of the Evil in her heart, the things that could happen. She scared the girl so much that Mira was kind to everyone, not saying impolite word to even her worst enemies. Racie knew that Mira wouldn't be like her…and she loved the idea of it.

Mira was very careful of what she did so that the Evil wouldn't take over her. But she was abused to a point where she almost let all the Evil come out. She was abused physically, verbally, emotionally, and sexually by her mother and father. Sometimes the court would join in. By everyone, it does mean everyone. Even the Royal Hatter's oldest son, Travis, would watch. Mirana knew he didn't like that she was being hurt, but if he said anything, the same would be done to him.

"Racie, I want to go for a walk. Don't you?" the 13 year old girl asked. Her sister beamed and they stood, taking each others hands. They walked in the direction of Tulgey Wood, chattering on about nothing in particular, until they both bumped into someone. Well, two someones.

"I'm so sorry! Are you alright?" asked one of the boys.

"Watch where you're going!" exclaimed the other at the same time. The girls glanced up, about an inch each, and gasped at the boys in front of them.

In front of Iracebeth stood a young man who looked about 16 years old. His hair nearly reached his shoulders, but it looked nice. He was muscular and tall-ish, dressed in all black. His features were sharp and he was missing one eyes. The other eye was dark brown, nearly black as well. In front of Mirana stood a boy, about 14 years old. He was lean, but still a bit muscular like his friend. What caught her eye was the pale skin. It was exactly like hers. She was inclined to ask him if he was sick, but then noticed his hair. Oh my lord, that boy's _hair_. It was neon orange, sticking out in as many places as possible. His eyes were lime green and his eyelids were either teal or fuscia. It was an odd combination of colors, but they seemed to go together well. In Mirana's eyes at least.

"I-I'm so-sorry," stuttered the younger girl, unable to peel her eyes from the boy's face.

"How about you watch where you're going?" retorted Racie. She liked the guy she was looking at, but he was so rude!

"My name's Tarrant Hightopp. And you are…" Mirana gulped, trying to get a hold of herself.

"My name's Mirana."

"Your name…it starts with an 'M'. I've been investigating things that begin with the letter 'M'." Mira blushed profoundly and dropped her sister's hand.

"And my name is Illosovic Stayne." Tarrant mumbled under his breath, 'You've made a rhyme'. Mirana giggled and Iracebeth introduced herself with just a bit too much pride.

"My name's Princess Iracebeth of Crims."

"You're princesses?" asked both boys. Racie nodded and Mirana blushed. She didn't like being called a princess; she wasn't going to be Queen. Racie was.

"Yes, we are. Why don't you come by the castle some time?" The guys looked at each other and nodded, smiling. The girls turned and walked away, but once they were out of earshot, they laughed uncontrollably.

"You should've seen the way he was looking at you! It's obvious he likes you," Mirana stated.

"What about that Hightopp boy? He couldn't stop staring at you!"

"That's probably because I was staring at him, no doubt. He couldn't possibly like me ba- he could possibly like me."

"You were going to say the word 'back', weren't you? You're fond of him, Mira, I know it."

"And you're not fond of Illosovic?" Mirana inquired.

"I never said that," Racie whispered, blushing. And the two girls ran back to the castle, both wondering if it were possible that they had found someone they liked…


	2. Confessions

"**Appearances are often deceiving."—Aesop**

This is a rather serious chapter, much to my discomfort. But some explanation has to be done, I suppose. 

**Reviews extremely welcome! Thoughts, questions, concerns, **_**kind **_**criticism, something you'd like to see happen…**

The young men had been coming to the castle more and more often to visit the young sisters. Today, Tarrant came all by himself. At the moment, he stood behind a bush, watching her intently. She was constantly talking to the trees, gliding about the garden, or tending to her flowers. He found her quite beautiful, in a way. Others said she was unappealing, simply due to her eyebrows which happened to not match her hair. _I couldn't care less what the other's think,_ he'd say to himself. _She is naturally, utterly, frankly, modestly, totally, literally, genuinely, obviously, with a doubt just perfect! _At about this time, he would have to stop himself from screaming this out to the world. No one cared for the delectable creature besides him and her sister. His brother had told him all about what happened to the young woman during the night. He intended on investigating this.

"Mira?" he called, emerging from his hiding place. She turned towards him and beamed. She always loved seeing him, be it for the simplest reasons or the most complicated.

"Yes, Tarrant?"

"I must ask you something rather…personal." She furrowed her brow and tilted her head to the right, as if deep in thought.

"Go on," she urged, still pondering his statement.

"Well, I was wondering…You see, my brother told me that you're hurt when Night comes around and he said that you have bruises and your own father took your- excuse me- virginity and your mother hits you and sometimes the whole court joins in and sometimes, even-"

"Tarrant!" she whispered, little drops falling from her eyes. He stopped his rambling and looked at her tear-stained face. There was make-up running down it- rather quickly. He took his sleeve and wiped all of it away, then drew in a sharp breath.

"Wha' the bluhdy 'ell happened?" She looked like she'd been mauled by a bear. There were cuts going down her cheeks, bruises around her eyes, and even more bruises on her forehead. She tried to look away from him, but he caught her chin a little hard, making her wince. The young teenager mumbled 'nothing, nothing' so many times straight, he told her to be quiet.

"I'm sorry, but I must leave…" she tried to break from his grasp, but he pulled her into a tight hug, nearly cutting off her oxygen supply!

"Tarrant…can't…breathe…" He immediately let go of her, keeping only one arm in his hand. What the boy didn't know was that her sister was right behind the nearest bush, biting her lip to keep from crying out in despair for her sister.

"I can't let you walk away, knowing you'll be hurt. You make me too happy," he said, voice breaking a couple times. He bit his lip and looked around him, making sure no one would see. He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and ran off in the direction of the Tulgey Wood. He left our Mirana standing there, staring after him in shock, thinking none-the-less.

"Mirana of Crims!" She broke from her stunned state and whipped around towards the voice. She saw Racie walking towards her, her mouth in an 'O' of surprise, her face growing paler by the second. She had overheard, had she? _How can I cover this up?_ Mirana thought. _It's naught for usal! She can see the bruises, can she not? They're rather obvious, I suppose._

"Yes?" she asked meekly. Her voice was rather high and squeaky, like a child caught with a strawberry tart just before tea time. And the yelling began, just as she expected.

"How could you let this go on? You should have told me! Do you not see how you look right now? You looked like you've been attacked by a bloody Jabberwocky for heaven's sakes! Who did this to you? I may as well have their heads hacked off for this! Well, are you going to answer me?" By now, Racie was looming over her, causing Mirana to crouch down in fright. She didn't like to see her sister angry.

"You can't have their heads hacked off," she said sadly.

"And why not?"

"Because then you'd be killing the King and Queen of Underland and their court. Then we'd have no peace in Underland, would we? It'd be mass chaos." But Iracebeth wasn't listening. She had backed away, rocking on her heels. _Impossible, _she thought.

"Nothing's impossible here, sister." Iracebeth barely noticed she had said this out loud. "It's not so terrible, love. Only a couple more years, then you'll be Queen and all will be right."

"A couple more years…Do you realize what could happen in just a couple years? You could die. You could suffer a head trauma. Then, even when I become queen, there's still Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. That is, if you live. They could break your spine in one kick. They could snap your neck with one punch. You could get a deadly STD or STI. They could pick you up and drop you like a rag doll until you finally just die. The possibilities are infinite! Mirana, this can't go on, dear. I will put a stop to It if it's the last thing I do. Now come, let's get those cuts fixed up." Mirana took her sister's hand trustingly and followed her to the kitchen. Little did she know what Iracebeth was going to _cook up_ for her parents very soon…


	3. Seperation

"**A child may not remember what you said to them. But they will remember how you made them feel. **_**Silent.**_**"—Unknown**

**Alright, these past few weeks have been hectic, so don't kill me for taking so long to update. I'm trying to raise over $3,000 and my schedule's filled to the brim with Y.E.S club, Yearbook meetings, fundraising events, and homework. I'll try and update as many times as I possibly can in as short amount of time as possible**

**Thank you!**

**Marvelous Mirana of Marmoreal**

Yet another year later, and Iracebeth was 19 years old, growing a large head, participating in a relationship with Illosovic, and was parentless for the first time in 19 years. She still couldn't believe it had worked. One little potion- with some poisonous plants she found out about in Mirana's botany book- and they were gone within hours. So now, she was the Queen of Underland.

Or so she thought.

The court had a hard decision. Though they despised Mirana, they had to admit- she would make a better Queen than Iracebeth would. They decided to crown Mirana the new White Queen of Marmoreal. Iracebeth didn't like that. She didn't like that at all.

"Oh, Racie, I'm so sorry! I- I didn't get a choice!" Mirana said, hastily trying to make amends with her sister before she went to make some new laws and change some old ones.

"I know. But…I have to do this, Mirana. It's for your own good." She took out the Big Book of Iracebeth's Vows (she named it herself) and added the last vow.

_I vow to never come within touching distance of my little sister in order to be sure never to hurt her._

She left after that, taking the book with her, leaving Mirana in tears. Neither of them had any family left now. Mirana wanted her sister back more than anything. They were each other's best friends, companions, and advisors. They could tell each other anything. For the next few months, they thought about each other, themselves, and if either dare see the other. Something they both wondered was how two people could go from so close to absolutely…nothing.

* * *

Mirana was young- just 16- and confused. She 'disposed' of the previous court and began a new one. Her royal hatter was – of course- Tarrant Hightopp. Her messengers were Chessur Cat and Nivens McTwisp. The head cook was Thackary Earwicket and the Queen's personal 'warrior' (a new, made up post) was Mallymkin the dormouse.

Mirana visited the Hatter's Workshop often, watching Tarrant work quickly. His fingers were nimble- never missing a stitch. She visited the messenger wing of the castle and kept McTwisp from a panic attack daily, while nearly having her own when Chessur materialized right in front of her face. When asked why he did that, he merely disappeared. She'd always have Mallymkin on her shoulder, who reluctantly poked Chess in the nose whenever he did it.

"You seem upset," she was told one day. And that was when the smiles started. She had had years of practice perfecting a fake smile and now she was putting it to use. Of course, when in her own company, she dropped it and let herself feel the sorrow. But that came to a stop very quickly.

One day, as she was sitting in a receiving room, she closed her eyes and let one tear fall. That was all it took. Her mind filled with images from her childhood that wasn't so far behind her.

_Her father pushing her down onto the bed and forcing her legs open._

_Her mother pinching her in the most sensitive of places._

_The court giving her bruises and red handprints on her arms._

_Blood trickling down her limbs, hair, and face._

_Broken bones._

_Vomiting._

_Starvation._

She let out a scream as her mind was flooded with the images she'd wished to never see again. She barely noticed when she gripped the sides of her head and fell to her knees on the floor, curling into herself. She didn't notice when Tarrant rushed into the room and tried to pry her hands from her bloodstained scalp. From that day forth, she didn't let herself feel anything- from sorrow to hope, from pain to excitement.

And the worst part was that she knew exactly what was happening. Iracebeth had told her once…every little detail and it described everything that was happening to her. The pictures, the urges, the pain, the dreams. It was all there. She hated it, despised it, didn't care for it, dreaded it, how ever you wanted to phrase it, it was all the same. She had known it was possible that this could happen, but she didn't expect it to happen to her at 16 years old. Then again, that was the same age Iracebeth had been overcome...

* * *

_"Mira? Mira, where ar' ye, ya sillay girl?" asked an accented male voice. SHe smiled to herself, letting the happy slip through for a moment. Her door opened and in stepped the madman. He shut and locked the door behind him- panicking Mirana greatly. He walked towards her until she was backed into a wall. She pressed herself up against it so hard her back hurt, and he placed his hands on either side of her tiny figure._

_"Wha-what do y-you need?" He smiled slyly and let down one arm, sensing her fear. She didn't dare move though. He leaned his face close to hers until almost no air seperated them. His body pressed hers closer to the wall and he grinned. Her breathing became short. TO her surprised, she was rather excited by what he was doing. _

_"I need yoo, lassie." Her eyebrows furrowed together in confusion. Until her crushed his lips to hers. Her eyes widened in surprise and she struggled for a moment, then remembered. How long had she wanted this? How many times had she had this day dream?_

_Day dream._

Her eyes snapped open and found herself in her room once again, staring at an unopened door. She sighed, and thought to herself "Come now, Mirana. You opened your eyes...realize it already! It was only just a dream..."


	4. Sibling Rivalry

**This is the end! AAAHHHH! Haha, enjoy, review, give me new ideas for another story please?**

"**F****or me being the youngest, there was never ever anything that was an issue to cause rivalry between me and my sister."—Nicole Appleton**

Mirana smiled to herself like a fool as she put on her best dress and her favorite jewelry. She donned her crown last, not even feeling the weight of it. She put on white make up around her eyelids and scowled a moment as she realized it didn't cover up the purple bruises. She hadn't slept well last night and was regretting it now.

She pulled on her white boots and studied herself in the mirror. She was going to a festival held by the Hightopps every year. Tarrant had invited her to go this year and share in on the activities. They were very close friends now. Sometimes, they'd hold each other's hands when they were alone. Mirana's heart would race whenever their skin touched.

"Mirana?" asked a voice from the other side of her door. She recognized it as her beloved Hatter's.

"Yes?" she asked, teasing him.

"Are you ready to go?"

"Where are we going?" She stifled a laugh.

"To the festival! Don't tell me you forgot!"

"That was today? Shoot." She heard him growl and opened the door. She smiled slyly, knowing he hadn't picked up on the fact that she had been kidding. She pressed a palm to his face when she noticed his eyes were slightly orange. "I'm only kidding, Tarrant. I wouldn't miss this for the world." He grinned, showing the gap in his teeth, and held out his elbow for her to take. They made their way out to the front of the castle. Mirana mounted her horse and watched Tarrant take the lead. He led them to his clan's piece of land.

He greeted everyone with a hug and a kiss on the cheek. Mirana noticed his niece- Nennie- running up to her. She got off her horse and greeted her. The Queen took her up in her arms, surprising her greatly.

"Hello, Majesty." Mirana laughed at how formal such a young girl was.

"You know, you can call me my real name- Mirana- when it's just the two of us. Okay?" She beamed like she was the luckiest girl in the world and nodded. Mirana touched her forehead to the young girl's. "Do you want to know a secret?" She nodded again, bouncing our heads together. Mirana laughed again and said, "Your Uncle Tarrant is watching us." She squirmed out of her arms- slippery thing- and ran over to him. She let her hands drop to her hips and watched as he took her on his shoulders and ran around the whole Tulgey Wood. He eventually gave her to her mother. Her mother's name was Tarra, his twin sister. Tarrant made his way over to Mirana , squeezing between all his relatives.

"Enjoying yourself?" Mirana gave a quick nod as an answer and pulled him over to the side where no one could see them. She took one of his hands in her's and smiled.

"I love your family, Tarrant. They're so kind and funny." He was staring at our hands. He took my other hands in his free hand and looked at her. Mirana gently removed her hand from his grasp and reached up to play with his long orange curls. He was staring her in the eyes, so she kept her focus on his hair. He very suddenly grabbed her hand away from his head and kissed her full on the lips. She gasped, but eventually relaxed into it. This time it wasn't a day dream. This was real. He tangled his fingers in her hair and her arms snaked around his neck.

They broke apart to breathe, but were together again once we'd caught our breath. After a few minutes they went back to the party, grinning like Chessur. Tarrant caught Mirana's thin waist in his arm and started dancing with her. He spun her so that she was facing him and placed his hands on her hips. She put her hands on his face and they both swayed side to side and entered their own little world. He surprised her by turning her so that her back was to his front. He held her hands so that they were floating just above her shoulders.

"Do…do you mind dancing with me?" he asked nervously. She turned just her head and gave him an extremely quick peck on the lips.

"I love dancing with you…" They danced the day away, only stopping when Mirana's feet grew tired. She climbed back on her horse and watched everyone around her enjoying the festivities.

What a happy day this was. She started swaying in time to the music and Tarrant clapped in time to the dancer's steps. Mirana was turning to look at Nennie again, but a giant shadow came over her. She dared to glance up at it and immediately wished she hadn't. Looming over them was the Jabberwock.

It let out a bolt of lightning, destroying everything in its path. Her horse bucked, throwing her head forward and whipping it back again. She felt her crown slip off and reached to grab it, but Tarrant was already leading her and her horse away from the horror. The last thing she saw was Nennie tripping and falling onto the ground, a look of terror frozen on her face.

Tarrant knew he had to get Mirana out of there- even at the cost of his family.

Stayne knew he enjoyed watching all this pain- even if it meant losing a dear friend.

Mirana knew who caused this- she just refused to believe it.

Iracebeth knew this was wrong- but she wanted her crown back.

And so began the sibling rivalry.


End file.
